<<<< Several postings in the last couple weeks have included claims of paddling home "...10 miles against a 20 knot head wind ..." or similar. (At least one of these was made by a paddler soloing a canoe!) I wonder about those 20 knot head winds. Was it really that windy? Here are the reasons for my skepticism. 1. It's darn tough to make much headway against a 20 knot head wind. John Dowd, in his tome "Sea Kayaking" (p. 139 of the 3rd edition) details his estimates of headway possible against wind: Head Wind (knots) Kayak Speed (knots) 10 - 15 2.50 - 2.25 15 - 20 2.25 - 1.50 20 - 30 1.50 - 0.75 So let's hear it, you young, strong paddlers ... was that *really* a 20 knot head wind? What was the sea state like? <<<< Well, as a young paddler of 34, I think Dowd's numbers are pretty good. My wife and I were at the North Carolina coast early in September and for most of the time we were there the wind was in the 20-30 knot range. Small craft advisories according to the weather radio. We were paddling on the sound off of Topsail Island and not the on the ocean so we were protected from large wind driven waves for the most part. My SO is not as strong of a paddler as I am but she insisted on going with me one day when it was very windy. The wind was from the south and we paddled the first half of the day trip so that the wind was at our back, i.e., we went north, then crossed through some channels in the marsh to get to the Intercoastal Waterway. We went north for a mile or so and decided to turn back. It took us a good hour to make that mile against the wind. I could have made it much quicker but the SO just did not have the strength to paddle fast into that headwind. With some gusts she was actually moving backwards! Going through the marsh was not against the wind and the marsh grass offered protection. There was another open stretch of water of about a mile in length that we had to cross and it to took about an hour. I was using a GPS to measure our speed and distances. I have paddled in winds like this before, not on the ocean but on large lakes in North Carolina. When wind is in this range paddling is very interesting. I have found it is best to go into a low paddle and save your energy for the lulls in the wind. Fighting the wind is foolish. You just have to make the best speed as possible. Its like running or hiking up a large hill without killing yourself. You have to keep the effort the equal to what you were running/hiking prior to the hill by lowering the speed you are moving. If you try to maintain the same speed your effort goes way up and the hill/wind is going to win.... I have been meaning to write up a trip report about some of this because I think some interesting conversations would occur.... Well, it's almost winter so we need something to talk about... Feathered/Unfeathered Paddles: Has anyone paddled into 20-30+ knot winds with a feathered paddle? I paddle unfeathered but I think when the winds are in this range the only thing one can do is make headway. Your body in the wind is just such a huge sail that the paddle configuration is the least of your concerns.... Would an feathered paddle make a difference? Boat Design: What is severe weather cocking? At what wind speed does it appear? Rudders/Skegs: How do rudderless and skegless kayaks handle high wind and steep waves to prevent severe weather cocking and broaching? Won't ALL kayaks eventually broach to the wind and the waves? At what wind speed is this "acceptable"? Canadian Ballast Rocks: How many of them do I need to help with the problems listed above? Later... Dan McCarty *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************Received on Thu Oct 15 1998 - 07:52:53 PDT
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